Bookends
by Madam Mim
Summary: REVISION PART TWO. [InuKag] Inuyasha and Kagome must overcome obstacles (i.e. Mrs. H and general fear of the birds and the bees) to finally become mates. Very bad summary. COMPLETE.
1. Tea break

Bookends (Revised June 2004).

Author's Notes: So, now I'm doing revised editions of things?  Egad.  In reality, it hasn't been quite long enough for me to shriek and change _too_ many major things, but the whole thing's going to be tightened a little.  I'm just shrieking over the idiotic mistakes…leaving out words, repeating myself, using NONPOETIC LANGUAGE!

Thanks to everyone who left suggestions on what to fix. 

Rating: PG-13

Head's Up: Blah, blah, _italics_ indicate a "flashback," although I'm sure you would have figured that out (because, after all, stupid people aren't allowed on ff.net).  This may not be completely obvious, but this is taking place several years later than the series is at presently.  No, the quest isn't over, yes, Kagome and Inuyasha are finally in a relationship, but they're not mates.  Yet. (duh duh duh duuuuuuuuuh)

Disclaimer: Once again, since this is a fanfiction website, that's your first clue that these characters don't belong to me.  They are copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi.

The days were not so long now.  The sun, sensing the year dwindling, retired earlier to its bed and stayed there longer each night.  That was the regrettable aspect of fall.  The weather was cool and the dying leaves were beautiful to behold, but there was less time to enjoy them in the splendor of the sun's light. 

In the feudal era, dusk had arrived, and the village near the Bone Eater's Well was lit by orange fires in lamps and on torches.  They gave the village a warm glow that extended past the huts and to the forest beyond, including the well and two figures arguing in front of it.

"Inuyasha, I can't leave until you let go of my hand."

"Feh. Why do you think I won't let go, wench?"

            Kagome just rolled her eyes and tried to yank her hand free once more.  Any other girl might have slapped the hanyou for calling her such, but Kagome knew that Inuyasha's insults meant nothing.   His harsh language was built in, and no amount of prodding him to just say "woman" instead was going to change that.  No bother; everybody had pitfalls.

            But _God_, that possessive nature of his was getting on her nerves.

            The quest for the few remaining shards of the Shikon Jewel and the ensuing battles were still not finished, but there had been times that the intensity of the search lulled on all sides.  There would be months where the fights seemed never-ending, and then there were times where everything would be quiet, as if good and evil were recharging their batteries.  Now was one of those times.  With no shards in any close proximity, and the absence of foes for the past week, the group had agreed that now was an ideal time to let Kagome visit her family.  Inuyasha, forever and always in a group by himself, was the only one to be staunchly against this decision.

To further show just how much she wanted to get going, she hoisted herself up with her free hand and sat on the rim of the well. 

"Let go," she repeated, enunciating each word with another tug.  "I need to go home."

            "What's so great about that place that you have to keep going back?" he asked, peering at her.  Now his other hand joined the tug-o'-war.  She glared at him and tried pushing against the combined grip of his hands with her foot. 

            "Now you're just being stupid," she retorted, struggling to get free.  "And childish.  How else can I see my family if I don't go home?"

            "Your family is _here_," he growled, frowning with this surprisingly arduous episode.

            "I can have more than one," she argued. 

            It seemed he had an epiphany just then, or at least some sort of realization.  He blinked and dropped her hand.  He must have been thinking something over, for he didn't speak for a few minutes, just staring at the trees off in the distance with a furrowed brow.

"That reminds me," he said, suddenly joining her on the lip of the well.

"What?" she asked. 

"I'm coming with you," he asked. He crossed his arms over his chest. 

"That's what it reminded you of?" she inquired suspiciously.

"No."

"Then what?  Have you finally decided to act like a gentleman?  Are the ways of chivalry not lost on you yet?"

"I think you know the answer to that question," he huffed. 

"Well, all right." 

They both sat in the usual, uncomfortable silence that accompanied them wherever they went.  Both were frowning.

"Big oaf," Kagome muttered, shoving him hard in the arm.

"Ack!"  Her violent accusation caught him off balance and they both fell backwards into the well.

They landed with a loud thump in the 21st century.  Kagome, landing on top of Inuyasha, only hit her head on his chest.  He, on the other hand, slammed his head and the rest of his body on the solid ground.

"Dammit, woman!" he growled, holding his head. 

"Sorry," she mumbled.  She was embarrassed at her clumsiness and the horrible irony. But looking up and knowing that the sky was that of _her_ century's alleviated her qualms.   The sky winked down at them through the charred remains of what had once been a roof, that is, before a rather close call with a youkai that favored attacking with huge bursts of flame.  It had darkened considerably, and the moon could be seen above their landing site at the bottom of the well.  She was glad that the simple things like the moon and stars didn't change between the centuries.  The moon waxed and waned the same way here as it did five hundred years ago. 

Inuyasha followed her gaze upward, wrinkling his nose at the dimness of the sky.  The sky of Kagome's time was tainted by the glare of artificial lights from her house and the others nearby, whereas the sky of the past was uninhibited and brilliant.  It always unnerved him slightly every time he came here.  He sighed and gently pushed Kagome off his torso.  She turned her attention back to him.

"Aren't _you _the poster-boy of cleanliness," she said sarcastically, pointing to the dirt and muss in his long, white hair.

"I could say the same for you," he replied cordially.  He pulled at the offending brambles and dusted off his red robes.  "And I don't see the point, since someone in your family is sure to screw it up." 

He gingerly touched the sensitive dog-ears on top of his head.  "I should just cut them off and give them to those people so they'd leave me alone."

Kagome glared at him again.  "Did you come with me just to insult my family?" she questioned.

He closed his eyes to her withering look.  "I'm just saying they shouldn't smother me.  You think they'd never seen a hanyou before."

She threw her arms up.  "They haven't!" she said exasperatedly. 

He didn't answer her, instead deftly leaping to the top of the well and offering her a hand.  "No time to lose.  It'll start to rain soon."

She accepted his offer, although she could have gotten out herself.  It didn't look as if it was about to rain, she thought.  No clouds nearby, except for the wispy and insubstantial cirrus ones that wrapped themselves around the moon. 

He pulled her out of the well and they stood close together in the dark shadow of the shrine.  The lights suddenly came on, and they both winced from the unexpected brightness.  He took a step forward to go inside.

"You're coming in?" she asked.

"Yes," he replied.

"Why?"

"I'm hungry—and I have to give them my ears."

She punched his shoulder again, and he walked off, muttering, "Always this abuse."

Kagome looked around her quiet shrine a last time.  No—not her shrine.  She did not associate it with home anymore.  Only her mother, brother, and grandfather were home here.  The physical place had lost its meaning for her.  It was still a comforting place, but it didn't offer her the same comfort as before.  Mostly it just filled her with nostalgia for the simpler life she used to lead. 

A raindrop hit her cheek.  She blinked and looked up at the clouds that had moved across the sky during their exchange.  She hurried after Inuyasha, who was waiting for her at the door.

"Oh!" Kagome's mother exclaimed as Inuyasha and Kagome walked through the door.  "You've both come!"

Kagome embraced her mother of whom she had seen so little of these past few years.  "Sorry I'm late," she said.

Her mother only shook her head.  "No, I never expect you to be here when you say you will, not with him," she added surreptitiously, nodding toward Inuyasha, who tucked his hands into his billowing sleeves as a response.

Kagome pulled her thick hair away from her face and took off her jacket.  "Where's Souta and Grandpa?" she asked. 

"Souta's at a movie with some friends and Grandpa…" she sighed waving her hand dismissively, "Who knows?  He's must be around the shrine somewhere."

"Probably preparing for an exorcism," Kagome said drolly, looking at Inuyasha.

"Indeed," he sniffed.  He looked grumpy as usual.   

Kagome handed her coat to her mother, who then hung it in the closet.  She hesitantly turned to Inuyasha, who, in his red fire-rat robe, contrasted sharply with the calm, muted colors of the house.  "Is there any part of that I can take for you?  Aren't you warm?"

He was about to answer no, but couldn't, as Kagome had already yanked off the top half of the robe. 

"This part comes off, Mama," she said, giving it to her. 

She placed it in the closet reverently, somehow understanding its importance.

"It's a very fine haori," she said to the aggravated Inuyasha.  "What's it made of?"

            Again, he tried to answer, but then a peculiar scent reached his nose. 

            "Is something burning?" he asked. 

            Both Kagome and her mother gave a small "Eep!" and rushed into the kitchen.  Inuyasha, amused but not surprised at this reaction, followed the proverbial trails of dust left behind by their quick exit.

The dinner was lovely, albeit crispy.  However, Inuyasha had been unusually quiet, and this anomaly distressed Kagome.  The flow of complaints, declarations of honor and love, and so many other exciting eccentricities had been shut off for some reason.  Throughout the whole meal, his brow had been furrowed in thought.  Kagome's mother began to clear the table, and Kagome began to stand up to help.  Then, she suddenly felt his hand on her knee.  She leaned in so he could whisper into her ear.

"How are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

"Fine…why?" she asked suspiciously.

"It's not…near your time of the month is it?"

"_No_," she replied hotly.  "What sort of a thing is that to ask? Wouldn't you know?"

"Feh, I haven't got your cycle memorized.  Besides," he answered gruffly, sitting up.  "You're always so moody I can never tell if it's PMS or not."

"_What_?  Ooh," she sputtered irately, yanking his ear.  He winced and clenched his teeth over the abuse being wreaked on his sensitive ear.  

"Damn you, stop it!"

"You're lucky.  I'd sit you, but you'd break the chair."

Just then, Souta burst into the kitchen. At first, he looked annoyed that they had had dinner without him, but immediately he broke into a huge grin upon seeing his sister home. 

"Kagome!" he shouted, running across the room to throw his arms around his sister.  "It's been forever.  Was he keeping you there all this time?"   He gestured towards Inuyasha with his head, who scowled.

"You make it sound like a bad thing," he muttered to no one in particular.

"You're in trouble already," Kagome said to him.  "It was a long time, wasn't it, Souta?  Nearly four months."

"Yes," Souta huffed.  "I had hoped you'd be back before this project was due.  Did you have to write a research paper on the Enlightenment in Europe when you were in high school?"

"That's nice, Souta," she said.  "All you want is a favor?  Typical."

"Oh, come on, you know that's not…entirely true," he said, grinning again.  He pulled Kagome towards the stairs.  "I've done all my research, but it's not like my teacher actually told us to write a research paper." 

She let herself be dragged upstairs, listening to Souta babble on about how cracked up philosophers were and that he couldn't believe they just sat around in coffeehouses all day complaining for a living.  She waved goodbye and blew a kiss to Inuyasha and her mother, though which gesture was intended for which person remained unclear to the recipients.  

Inuyasha was suddenly aware that he was alone with Kagome's mother, and his duty, for which he had followed Kagome down the well, was weighing down on him once again, just as it had been doing so for the past few months.  Unsure of how to initiate a conversation with an almost a total stranger, he picked up some of the plates from the table and walked over to where she was loading the strange cupboard she put things in so she didn't have to wash them herself.

"Here," he said hesitantly, offering her the dirty plates. 

She smiled warmly at him and took them to place on the metal rack.  "Thank you," she said.  "Did Kagome explain what this is?"

"Uh, yes, I think," he responded.  "Is this the same one you clean clothes in?"

"No, no, that's different," she said.  "It's in another room, and it doesn't have this rack, you see."

He liked her way of speaking.  It was very calm and maternal.  Quiet and languid.  She didn't seem at all impatient with him for not knowing things that she must have thought rudimentary.  He fetched some more plates and utensils off the table. 

When the table was cleared, she closed the door of the cupboard and pushed a button on the front.  It began to make a whirring sort of noise, and there was the sound of water rushing.  She wiped down the table with a towel tucked into her apron, sweeping away the last crumbs of the meal.  Inuyasha sat back down at the table.

"Mrs. Higurashi," he said pertinently.  No point in putting this off, he thought.  "I have something I need to ask you."

"All right," she answered.  Her back was turned to him as she untied her apron and hung it on a peg near the doorway.  She faced him, dusting her hands on her long skirt.

"It's about—" he began.

"Kagome?" she interrupted, glancing at him askance.  When he nodded, she lowered herself into the chair across from him.

"I need to know…" he trailed off, suddenly at a loss as to how to frame his question.

"Yes?" she asked expectantly. 

"I need to you if you approve of me as a mate for Kagome," he blurted out, looking at his feet.

"Pardon?" she looked at him oddly.  "A…. But, what about that walking corpse?"

"Kikyo?" he, in turn, stared at her as if she'd lost her mind.  "Don't you know?  I killed her."

_"Put her down," Inuyasha hissed.  _

_"Or…?" Kikyo asked in a bored tone. She held the struggling girl in front of her, pressing her against her chest with her arm and holding her there.   Kagome squirmed and tried to claw herself from Kikyo's iron grip, but in vain.  Her bow and arrows lay useless on the ground where they had fallen.  _

_Inuyasha took a step forward.  He motioned for Sango and Miroku to stay back, near the forest.   _

_"Don't think you can use what we once had against me," he said, threateningly.  "It will not work."_

_"It has before," she retorted icily._

_"Yes, _before_."_

_In an instant, his claws were upon her, slicing her arm off at the shoulder and pushing Kagome aside.  After that point, dismemberment was the least of Kikyo's problems._

"Oh," Kagome's mother said, a little taken aback.  "I'm sorry—"

Inuyasha shook his head.  "Don't be.  I'm not."

"Goodness," she said quietly to herself.  A lot had happened that Kagome had failed to mention.

"Do you approve?" he asked again.

"Well," she began, clearly as uneasy as he was.  "That depends on what Kagome says."

"She said yes," he replied.

          __

_The smoke of the funeral pyre climbed high into the sky, tainting the clouds with its ash. It had been built right on the battle site, in a clearing surrounded by dense woods. Miroku led the customary prayers begrudgingly, but Inuyasha showed true, if minimal, respect for the dead.  He tried to remember Kikyo before the fateful day he had been sent into his long sleep.  It was difficult—memories of her past several years as a vengeful, reanimated corpse crowded his head.  Which one had been the true Kikyo?  The love she had felt for him those years before was nothing compared to her hate for him, but…it had been there all the same.  He shook his head. It was pointless to analyze what was dead and forgotten, and indeed, Kikyo had been forgotten by Inuyasha. _

_He bowed his head a final time, and in doing so left her to the levels of hell or wherever she had gone.  His eyes instead searched for Kagome._

_She, too, had tried her best to be reverent, standing far off from the pyre, still shaken by the sudden battle.  Kaede had given her a simple yukata to wear instead of the tattered clothes from her time.  It was towards the middle of summer, so she had worn something a little more sensible than her school uniform, but it was no match for the trials of the feudal age.  _

_He came over to her.  Taking her hands, he asked, "Any better?"_

_She swallowed.  "A bit," she said.  "I was just so…so surprised—"_

_"At what?  The attack or the results?" he asked pointedly._

_She looked up at him, not really sure what to say to his poignant statement._

_He had expected such a response.  "We'll be back," he called to Miroku.  "Behave."_

_Miroku nodded solemnly, this time deciding not to reply to the latter of Inuyasha's statement.  _

_Inuyasha turned, pulling Kagome into the forest with him, intending to go as far as he had to until he couldn't see the smoke. _

_"Where are we going?" she asked quietly, not wishing to disturb the tranquil forest anymore than necessary.  _

_"I need you to understand," was all he said. He pressed on, alert to sounds and smells of the forest, searching out anything dangerous.  There weren't many animals there—they had been driven off by the battle, and had yet to return.  Still grasping Kagome's hand, he headed for a small patch of light amid the dark trees._

            "And when was this?" Kagome's mother inquired, soft and patient tones gone.  Kagome had never deliberately kept things like this from her before, and it irked her. 

            "Last summer," Inuyasha said blamelessly, toying with the edge of his robe. 

The branches and leaves of the trees did not reach far enough to cover the hole in the foliage.  Sunshine filtered through, casting a misshapen circle of light on the undergrowth.  Inuyasha stopped right in the center of the circle, and let go of Kagome's hand.  

_            She stepped in front of him, and held his gaze.  He stuck his hands in his sleeves._

_            "What don't I understand?" she asked.  _

_            He breathed deeply, looked up and closed his eyes.  "Many things.  But all I want is for you to try to understand me."_

_            She blinked, "You?"_

_            He nodded.  "Why didn't you think I was willing to kill her?" he asked quietly._

_            She seemed ashamed, as if he had accused her of not having faith in him.  Hesitantly, she embraced him, and he, too, placed his arms around her.  He laid his head on hers, as he had done many times before._

_            "I don't know," she admitted to his robes.  "There was always a little bit of…doubt, I guess, because she was first."_

_            "Yes," he said, "But I never asked her to...."_

_            "What?" she glanced at him in confusion._

_            "To be my mate." _

Her irritation bothered him—he wasn't sure if she was annoyed at Kagome, at him, or both of them.

            She got up and began to noisily busy herself by making a cup of tea.  The once serene kitchen was abruptly filled with various clanging and banging, coming from cupboards being closed and teakettles being roughly set on the stove.  He winced as each offensive sound reached his ears.

            "We're just…promised.  Neither of us were ready yet," he assured her as she ripped open a tea bag.  That seemed to appease her, if only a little. 

            _In few minutes, he'd have to check if she was still breathing.  She had been completely motionless since his…proposal._

_            "Are you there?" he asked her hair._

_            Kagome shook herself to snap out her previous trancelike state.  "Sorry," she mumbled, self-consciously.  "I didn't expect you to ask me so soon."_

_            He squeezed her to him.  "At least you assumed I would ask," he smiled._

_            She looked up to see his face, saying, "Well, after you told me _that_ I figured…."_

            _"That I would only mate you after I confessed my love?" he smirked._

_            "Yes!" she jabbed his ribs.  "That's the way it works."_

_            He sighed and stared at the boughs of leaves above him.  "Good thing I did that, then.  I'd hate to imagine what you've done to me."_

_            "Ha, you _know_ what I'd have done."_

            "Hmm," she was stirring sugar in the tea and thinking.  Then, she took her mug and spoon and sat back in her chair.  Inuyasha stared at her expectantly.  But she didn't indulge her thoughts to him, instead tapping her spoon against the wood for no other reason than to bother him.  This man…half-man was changing her daughter.  That was something she couldn't control, and would have to accept.  But, she was in control of this situation, and knew it.

            After a moment, she jabbed his hand with the spoon, as if to get his attention even though his eyes had not left her for a moment.  He nearly jumped a foot in the air because he was so tense.

            "Were you thinking of…any time, in particular?" she questioned.

            "Time?" He was confused by her esoteric train of thought again.

            "To…you know, do it," she said bluntly.

            His face went a little pink at the remark.  "Uh, I hadn't…" he trailed off.

            "All right," she sighed and began tapping the spoon again.  "I don't disapprove of you.  You're an honorable…man, even if you are a bit rough at the edges."

            He stood up quickly and bowed deeply, hands clasped in front of him.  "I promise to take care of your daughter with all that I am," he mumbled the foreign, formal phrase.

            His shyness and correctness were somewhat appealing to Kagome's mother.  She smiled and told him to stand up before he made a complete fool of himself.   Then she began to quietly and calmly ask him about feudal marriages.  He answered to the best of his ability, which was not very well.

            "Shouldn't you know just a little bit about marriages, since you're about to go through with one?" she commented bemusedly, looking at him over the rim of her mug.

            "Feh," he scoffed.  "It's not going to be a human marriage."

            She stopped sipping her tea.  "Pardon?" she asked.

            "We both agreed the youkai customs were easier to deal with," he said.

            "Are we still invited?" she asked, setting down the tea.

            His face flushed bright red.  "What do you think we are, woman? Exhibitionists?!" he shouted.

            "What?" she did not seem overly surprised at his display, although his last statement puzzled her. 

            "Hello! I'm back," Kagome called, suddenly appearing beside Inuyasha.  "What's wrong with your face?"

            He didn't answer her, too busying being embarrassed and muttering about the profound ignorance that ran in her family.  Kagome smiled, leaning against his chair, placing a hand on his head to stroke his ear.  That calmed him down a bit, although his face remained red as he sank further into the chair. 

            "You were talking?" she ventured, feeling the soft fur on his ear.

            "Hm," he grunted.

            "What about?" she continued brightly.  She tugged his ear. 

            "Don't you start," he ordered, pointing a finger at her, but refusing to move from his zone of comfort.

            "I'm just making conversation," Kagome replied, looking at her mother for support, who nodded.

            "What time is it?" Inuyasha asked suddenly.

            "Late," Kagome responded with a yawn.  "Souta can be really dense sometimes."

            "Too late," he said, standing up and pushing Kagome out the door.  "Best be off."

            "Say," she grumbled, "If you're going to man-handle me, could you at least _try _not to prick me with those claws?"

            "Come off it, wench. I never prick you," he said.  He gave Kagome's mother a final bow before hauling her daughter out the door, but not before retrieving the rest of his haori from the hall closet. 

            "I'll be back!" Kagome promised as Inuyasha firmly shut the door.  Her mother serenely finished off the rest of her tea, and wondered about the environment her grandchildren were going to be raised in. 

A/N: Well, I think it's better.

And remember: any "interesting events" will be taking place next chapter, so keep your pants on ('cause our heroes sure aren't gonna).  


	2. Egad!

Bookends.

A/N: Aha!  Chapter the Second!  Revised!  (And they said it couldn't be done).

Rating: PG-13 for (gasp) rather blatant innuendo! 

Look out, the word 'sex' appears in this work about four times…er, I guess that counts as five.   Come on, folks, we all like to pretend we're adults, here!  (Eyes thirteen-year-old fangirls).  I'm watchin' you…

To freaky: I changed the bit with "deliberately."   I think "slowly" is a bit clearer.

To Matt MacGyver Santini: Thanks again for taking the time to re-review.

And thanks to everyone who left real reviews! 

Disclaimer: Dude, I'm a freaking fanfiction author.  Why would I write about anything that actually _belongs_ to me?

            "You know, I hope you're not deluding yourself into thinking that I'm going back already," she said to him, trying to dig her feet into the damp ground. 

            He scoffed, "Of course not."

            "Oh," she said, almost disappointed at losing the chance for more banter.  "That's…mature of you."

            "Are you always so bitchy when you're around your loved ones?" he commented, throwing open the door of the well's shed.  He then led her down the steps.

            "Perhaps," she sniffed.  "It depends on whether you're annoying me or not."

            He rolled his eyes.  They stood before the Bone-Eater's Well, the wood damp from the rain.  It was dark, for the clouds had passed over the moon again.  Inuyasha dropped Kagome's hand to put on the top of his haori, carefully tying it in all the right places and smoothing the sleeves. 

            "Am I annoying you?" he inquired, nonchalant as he pulled one of the red sleeves past his wrist.

            She stuck her hands on her hips.  "_Yes_," she said.  "You're keeping something from me."

            "If I thought you needed to know what that something is, I would have told you," he retorted haughtily.

            "As if you're judgment's _ever_ been good," she retorted. 

            They stood glaring at each other for a few moments.

            "I'll miss you," she said quietly, looking down at her clasped hands.

            He smiled, stepping forward so his feet touched the tips of her shoes.  His hands grasped her own.  "When will you be back?"

            "Three days.  They're all leaving."

            His ears perked up.  "What?"

            "Seems the family needs to go to some convention about the business of owning a shrine and such in Hong Kong, of all places.  And since they don't have another ticket and I'm never around to take care of the shrine anyway, they're all going off without me," she shrugged.  "I might as well come back."

            "I see," he murmured, somewhat to himself.  Then, he looked up at her and squeezed her hands.  "All right.  Stay out of trouble."  He tapped the vial of shards around her neck.  "And don't loose those."

            "Oh please," she said.  "It's as if you don't trust me."

            "It's fate that I don't trust," he replied. 

            She laughed, and he wondered why.  Fate was definitely something to be wary of.  But then, the people of her era were much too full of themselves to believe that fate could control them.  Sometimes she acted invincible like that, though he liked to believe that she was brave, not foolish.  Numerous times over she had proven herself to be the former, but she had her moments.

            Kagome hugged him, whispering in his ear, "What were you talking about?"

            "I'll tell you later," he responded, restlessly pulling at the hem of her shirt.  "It's too…awkward…."

            "Oh my God," she gasped, turning pink. She pulled away and covered her face with her hands. "You were talking about—_sex!_"

            "_What?" _he cried, his face also becoming a vivid shade of red.

            "Oh, that _must_ be it," she was mumbling.  "What with no one to ask…."

            "I know how to do it!" he shouted.  "For God's sake, woman, why do you think I have to throw you down the well every time you go into heat?" 

            Upon realizing what he had just said, he slapped his hand over his eyes.

            "Stop shouting!" she exclaimed, still blushing.  "Someone will hear you!"

            "Just for the record, that was _not_ at _all_ the topic of our conversation," he said, pointing a finger at her.  "Like I would ever discuss that with someone…"

            "…You sure?" she asked.

            "Yes," he mumbled.  

            "Well, as long as you're sure…"

            "I _am._"

            "Good then."

            Silence overtook them again, Inuyasha silently fuming to himself and Kagome silently being embarrassed. 

            "I am never going to pry ever again in my life," Kagome vowed solemnly.

            Inuyasha snorted. 

             She smiled and stepped forward shyly.  "To prevent from shaming you further, I think it's best we say goodnight."

            She kissed his mouth, and then deftly pushed him down the well.  Kagome smirked at the look on his face: surprised, annoyed, and vengeful.

            "Bye, love!" she called after him before skipping back to the house.

            "Kagome!" her mother exclaimed as she walked in the door.  "Come in here for a moment."

            "What is it, Mama?" Kagome asked.  Her mother was busy washing a ceramic mug in the sink. The dishwasher had already been put up.  Her hands made even circles over the smooth glaze of the mug, spreading the soap bubbles into every pore. 

            "I heard you unsuccessfully trying to weasel an answer out of your betrothed," she said, turning on the faucet.  She dried her hands with a towel. 

            Kagome turned pink for the second (but most certainly not the last) time that evening.  "Oh, Mama…"

            "I heard some sort of yelling, in any case."

            Kagome lowered herself into a familiar kitchen chair, seated across from her mother.  "I had meant to tell you before," Kagome murmured guiltily.

            "I believe you," her mother replied, reaching across to hold her hand.  "I'm just curious…"

            "I couldn't tell you.  I've never been…proposed to before," she answered sheepishly.  "I didn't know what to say or how to say it."

            Her mother sighed, resting her cheek against her palm.  "I wish I'd realized sooner that I raised a ninny."

            "Mother!"

            "Hiding things from an old woman, you sneaky teenager, as if you can't trust me. After all, if _he_ could come talk to me then why on earth couldn't you?"

            "He did?  …And you let him?"

            "What?  Why wouldn't I?"

            "_I_ thought you didn't like him!"

            "With ears like that?  Where on earth would you get such an idea? It's all because you're never home long enough…"

            And so the conversation went, as conversations tend to go amongst teenagers and their mothers: insightful, argumentative, and long.  A light could still be seen from the kitchen even after all those around it had been extinguished.

Kagome's face hurt from laughing, so happy that she could be with her family for the first time in a long while.  For hours she strained to keep her eyes open, just to fit in one more sentence with her mother, until at last she declared it was time to go to bed. 

            Regretfully, she stood up from the table and embraced her mother.  "I've missed talking to you, you know."

            "I'm glad to know I'm missed," she replied,  "But sorry that you grew up without me." 

            Tenderly, she touched Kagome's chin and looked into her eyes.

            "Promise me that you'll tell me when something big happens."

            Her daughter nodded solemnly. 

            Kagome turned to leave, but her mother grabbed her hand.

 "A last bit of advice from an old wife to a bride."  She looked gravely into her eyes.

            "If he tries to get into your pants, shoot him.  It's not worth the aggravation."

            "Have a fabulous time in Hong Kong without me," Kagome said forlornly.  They stood on the curb, watching the taxi driver fit suitcases in the trunk of the car.   Up in a tree, a hidden figure was sitting and watching the exchange.

            "Stuff it," Souta replied.  "It's only fair."

            "Fine, leave me all by my lonesome, abandoning me to the wolves," she sniveled.

            "Now Kagome," her mother interjected, "I had thought he was a _dog_ demon."

            She had been having fun the past few days, making all sorts of comments designed to make Kagome blush and Souta all the more curious as to the subtlety of women's talk.  Her daughter was rather quick to embarrass and her son naturally inquisitive, and she had not failed as of yet. 

            The personage in the tree quirked an eyebrow. 

            Kagome turned pink, and eyed her mother.  "Just what are you implying?"

            "Whatever you think, dear, (not now Souta)," she replied brightly.  "We'll only be gone a few days, and we expect you to be here when we get home.  Don't think you can get out of visiting us that easily."

            "I would never think that," Kagome smiled.  The taxi driver honked his horn. They ended their goodbyes with final hugs, and Kagome waved to them as they drove off towards the airport.  She turned back to the shrine, unbeknownst of the figure in the tree waiting for night.

            That evening, Kagome watched the Styrofoam cup spin lazily in the microwave.  The low, electronic buzzing it emitted seemed loud in the quiet kitchen.  She had never realized how many noises populated the background of modern life.  Not like the feudal area.  There were no washing machines or TVs to pollute the atmosphere with their whirring din.  She wondered how Inuyasha could stand it, what with his sensitive hearing.

            She shined her spoon with the cuff of her sweatshirt.  She brought it up to her face for further inspection, tilting it this way and that and watching her reversed reflection change and elongate. 

            Good God, she was bored.  Without any dysfunctional personalities around to cheer her up or beat her down, all she could do was sit and watch the ramen spin.

            The microwave dinged, and she got up to get her soup.

She wanted to leave her home and go back to her home away from home…or was it, leave her home away from home and go home?  It was so hard to tell nowadays. 

Kagome leaned against the counter to ponder this.  What was her _real _home?  Her real family?  …Could she even answer that? she thought as she licked the broth off her spoon. 

How utterly ridiculous, she chastised herself.  After, all what was a "real" family or a "real" home, anyway?  She could have two, like divorced kids had two.  She was perfectly content with her lifestyle, idiosyncrasies and all.  It does no good psychoanalyzing things if you were already happy.  That was for miserable people who wanted to know why they were miserable, poor bastards.

            True to all human beings, she felt remarkably pleased at herself for creating a problem and solving it in less than a span of twenty minutes.  She swallowed the last drops of her soup, and went upstairs to get her backpack.  All too excited at the prospect of seeing Inuyasha (and company) again, she bounded into her room and….

            …Was extremely shocked to find him already there.

            Inuyasha was sitting very placidly on her bed, looking as if he had been there some time waiting for her.

            "You're late, wench," he said, turning to her.

            Kagome stood up against the door, looking like a guiltless prisoner before a firing squad.  There were a million things she could have said to him, but what came out was the very clever: "Wha?"

            He grinned and crossed the room to greet her.  She returned his embrace only half-heartedly, for she was too distracted trying to figure out why he was in her bedroom and why he had such a devilish look on his face.

            "What're you doing here?" she asked his shoulder.

            "To see you," he replied.  "There're…things we need to do."

            He reached under her arm and very slowly turned the lock. 

            A small voice at the back of her head was telling her that _that_ was certainly a nonsensical thing to do since no else was home, but it was drowned out by a much louder voice telling her that he was trying to send her some sort of signal. 

            "I've been thinking," he began, tugging at a loose strand of her hair, "How long are we going to put this off?"

            "Put what off?"

            She felt his hands at her waist, and his mouth on her ear.  "Something we only get halfway started on before—" 

Kagome gasped and tried to back away, but couldn't, pressed against the door as she was.  "You're─you're here to sex me up!"

            Inuyasha sighed.  "Can't fool you, can I?"        

            "B-but," she stammered, befuddled, "I'm…I'm…too…what…how…_I'm not going to let you take me without a fight!_"  She screeched this last bit, soundly slapping Inuyasha on the cheek.  She held her fists out in front of her. 

            This did not faze him, but it did confuse him profoundly. He held up his hands. "Calm down.  You know," he said cautiously, "It's not like I could force you."

            She lowered her fists.  "You couldn't?" she asked.

            He rolled his eyes.  "Feh! As if I could properly hold you down long enough."

            "What!  You horrible—" she began angrily, but then she realized he was laughing.   He fell back on her bed, holding his forehead.

            "You crazy virgin," he smirked, sitting up and holding out his hand to her.  "Come 'ere," he beckoned, still smiling.  Warily, she joined him on the bed.  He held her back against his chest and enveloped her crossed legs with his. 

            "Why now?" she inquired crossly.

            "All your prudish talk earlier made me want to ruffle your feathers."

She looked positively aghast.  "If I had only known…I would have kept my big mouth shut."

"And," he continued, not deterred in the least, "Now that I have your mother's permission, I'm legally allowed to take you."

            "Darn her."

            "I hardly think it would be _that _awful," he sniffed indignantly.   He pinched her leg lightly, and she gave a small squeak.  "That didn't hurt."

            "Don't tell me what I feel," she quipped. 

            "Quiet woman, this is serious," he said irritably.  "If you're really not ready, then why'd you even say 'yes' in the first place?"

            She scoffed.  "I'm afraid of sex, not marriage."

            He sighed again.  "Okay," he said solemnly, enticingly drawing circles on her leg with his fingers, "But that's the only thing keeping us from being married, you know."

            She huffed and crossed her arms.

            "Can't say I didn't try," he said, mostly to himself.  "You'll just be an old maid forever, then."

            "Oh, shut up," she pouted.  "Just because I'm not used to putting things _down there_ is no reason to make fun of me."

             "Crazy, temperamental woman," he grumbled.  "Don't take everything so seriously."

            "Sorry if I do," she snapped.

            He frowned, but stroked her hair.  "You know," he said quietly, "If you really don't want to, we don't have to.  Not today, that is."

            She didn't reply, but continued to sulk. 

            Inuyasha heaved another sigh and leaned against the headboard, closing his eyes.  Absentmindedly, he played with the edge of her skirt. 

            Kagome stared off into space.   She thought about things, like why she afraid of sex but not of crazy monsters, what her mother would think, how distracting Inuyasha's current ministrations to her thigh were, if her grandfather would have a heart attack when he found out, and how pointless thinking about thinking was. 

            Suddenly, she had a sort of revelation.  She wasn't afraid of sex, per se; she was afraid of change. 

At first, she did not believe it.  She was no weenie; she was an adapter, a trekker.  She could handle change. 

            Except…she hadn't faced any change in the past few years, not since Inuyasha came out and told her he loved her.  Her life had fallen into a certain routine: look for shards, fight monsters, go home, study, go back, fight more monsters… She had thought that being betrothed to him would make things different, but it hadn't.  Not really.  This would make them mates (a most definite change). 

            Just when she had some stability (shaky as it was) in her life, Inuyasha decides to get horny.  Stupid male. 

            What am I, spineless? she thought.  I will not fear change—I'm a _real _woman.__

Filled with new courage and determination to prove herself wrong, she sat up and poked Inuyasha in the ribs.

            He opened one puzzled eye. 

            "You," she turned around she jabbed her finger in his face.  "Take off your clothes.

            The day had started off quite nicely.  Birds chirped gaily in the trees, and were barked at by dogs.  The paperboy had delivered the news on time, and the loud thunk it had made against the shrine's door stirred the noisy birds from their branches.   One story up, sunshine peeked in through the shades, spreading its warm light into the bedroom and announcing the dawning of a new day.  It rudely awaked the dozing Kagome, who irritably glared at the sunlight and pulled the covers over her head.   Inuyasha groaned and threw his arm over her shoulders.  Vaguely, she wondered what he was doing in her bed and so…devoid of clothes.

            "Oh, that's right," she giggled slyly to herself. 

            Inuyasha grumbled against her neck, "Did you forget again?" 

            "I might have," she said unabashedly. "Does that injure your masculinity?"

            "It makes me wonder," he admitted touchily.  He lightly traced the healing youkai mark above her breast.  "Just goes to show, you're not a morning person."

Besides the fact that Kagome kept forgetting where she was every morning, it had been a nice three days. Goofing around, ramen, enjoying the time to themselves… Yes, very nice. So nice, in fact, that Kagome forgot that the other people who lived in her house were actually going to return.  After all, how could she think about her mother when she was too busy failing at making Inuyasha keep his hands to himself? 

That was why the sound of the front door opening came as such a shock to the young couple.

"What are all these newspapers doing here?" they heard Grandfather say from downstairs.

Kagome and Inuyasha looked at each other in dismay.

"Inuyasha, I want you to get out of bed, put on your clothes, and hide in the closet," Kagome ordered as calmly as she could, which was not very. 

He yawned and propped his face up with his hand.  "Why bother, mate?  You can't hide it from her forever.  When the pups come—"

"This instant!" she cried somewhat hysterically.  She roughly shoved him off the bed with her foot.  "Go!"

"Feh," he growled, but he did as he was told.  Kagome also managed to find her nightshirt under her pillow and hastily pulled it over her head. 

"Kagome!" her mother's voice carried up from the hall. 

"I think this would be a rather rough way to break it to her," she said to her closet. 

Inuyasha rolled his eyes from behind her sweaters. 

Kagome was about to reprimand him just as her mother opened the door.

"_There_ you are.  Why I'd almost think you weren't glad to see—"  She looked around the room.  She looked at her wide-eyed daughter.

"Kagome…why are there clothes everywhere…?"

"Er—"

"And why is Inuyasha standing in your closet?"

"Oh, well—"

"And why is your face so red, and—"   She stopped abruptly in realization.    

Kagome quickly burst in, "Hey, mom!  Guess what…"

A/N:  Weirdest foreplay.  Ever. 

You know those demons and their weird mating habits! 


End file.
